Mexican Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil (DGAC) investigators on Tuesday said that turbulence from a Boeing 767-300 caused the Nov. 4, 2008 crash of a government Learjet 45 in Mexico City that killed Mexican Interior Secretary Juan Camillo Mourino and eight others on board, as well as six people on the ground. Both aircraft were on approach to Mexico...
moreAs the result of the crash of an aeromedical Cessna Citation 550 into Lake Michigan more than two years ago, the NTSB has recommended that the FAA require all Part 91K and Part 135 operators to incorporate upset recovery into their training syllabi. Further, the Board wants to require Cessna to redesign and retrofit the yaw damper and autopilot switches on...
moreThe NTSB has issued its findings in the June 4, 2007 crash of a Cessna Citation II into Lake Michigan, which killed the two crewmembers and four passengers. The Board cited “the pilot’s mismanagement of an abnormal flight control situation through improper actions, including lack of crew coordination and failing to control airspeed and to prioritize control...
moreIn the wake of its investigation into the January 2007 fatal crash of a Hawker Beechcraft King Air A100 medical transport in Saskatchewan, the Canadian Transportation Safety Board (TSB) is calling on Transport Canada to enact stricter regulations on crew resource management training for all aircraft operators in Canada. “CRM training can significantly...
moreThe first incident involving an Embraer Phenom 100 caused no injuries to the two crewmembers aboard and damage only to the landing gear and flaps when the light jet overran the runway while landing at the Brazilian beach town of Angra dos Reis on October 12. A pilot holding for takeoff said the Phenom approached the runway at above-normal speed. Weather was...
moreContinuing the recent trend of safety improvement, business aviation accidents declined nearly 50 percent during the first three quarters of this year compared with the same period last year, according to statistics released by Boca Raton, Fla.-based industry safety analyst Robert E. Breiling Associates. While the decrease in flight hours–estimated by many...
moreThe swine flu, which has already reached the pandemic phase 6, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), could prove to be vexing for charter and business aircraft operators who often fly worldwide on short notice.The WHO defines the H1N1 pandemic as “a worldwide epidemic of a disease” of moderate global severity. Individual countries may encounter...
moreEver since the crash of American Eagle Flight 4184 (an ATR 72) in Roselawn, Ind., on Oct. 31, 1994, the NTSB has been recommending that the FAA enact a new rule that the Board believes might have prevented these accidents. As a result of the crash of Flight 4184, the NTSB recommended that the FAA “prohibit the use of the autopilot” during encounters with...
more• In January 2006, two pilots flying an American Eagle Saab 340 out of San Luis County Regional Airport in San Luis Obispo, Calif., nearly lost control after the autopilot shut off during icing conditions on climb-out. The Saab 340 lost 5,000 feet during the recovery. NTSB recommendation: Require all operators of turboprop- driven airplanes to instruct...
moreCoincidental to the early taste of winter weather the Northeast received in mid-October, NBAA–in conjunction with local airport user groups and state business aviation associations–sponsored a pair of cold-weather operational seminars aimed at exploring the challenges and threats presented by in-flight and ground icing, as well as runway...
moreThe FAA and co-sponsors Mitre and the American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE) are holding the first International Runway Safety Summit December 1 to 3 in Washington, D.C. All aviation safety professionals are invited, including pilots, controllers, researchers, aviation executives and government and labor officials. The purpose of the meeting is...
moreStatic electricity may cause pitot static probes to fail, according to a Cessna Citation X owner-pilot who survived a simultaneous failure of all three pitots during a flight earlier this year. Kirill Minovalov, a Russian entrepreneur and private pilot, was flying in stormy weather conditions when the incident happened; he managed to land safely at Moscow’s...
moreEurocopter AS 350, Georgetown, S.C., Sept. 25, 2009–N417AE, operated as a medical transport by Omniflight Helicopters, was substantially damaged when it crashed near Georgetown County Airport. The helicopter was operating on a VFR flight plan for a positioning flight to Conway-Horry County Airport in South Carolina. A review of preliminary radar data...
moreBell 206, Kahramanmaras City, Turkey, March 25, 2009–The helicopter was destroyed and the pilot and all five passengers on board were killed when the JetRanger crashed in mountainous terrain. The accident is being investigated by the Turkish Accident Investigation Board, with assistance from the NTSB.
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